The Lowdown 23-24

STUDENT GRIEVANCES
Student Complaint Guidelines and Contact Information
The University of South Alabama has written policies and procedures governing student
complaints. The following information details internal procedures for filing different types of
complaints. Students are encouraged to follow these procedures. In the event that a student
complaint cannot be resolved internally, contact information is provided for the Alabama
Commission on Higher Education and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
Commission on Colleges.
• General Complaints
• Sexual Harassment and Sexual Violence Complaints
• Final Grade Grievances
• Student Academic Conduct Policy
General Complaints
If a student has a complaint, they must provide a written description of the complaint, including
the date and time of the event, the person or group with whom the student has the complaint,
and the names of any witnesses. The written complaint must be submitted to the Office of the
Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students within 30 days of the event. Complaints
about academic matters also may be submitted to the deans and department chairs.
The Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students or his designee will then meet
with the grievant to review the complaint, after which the Vice President for Student Affairs
and Dean of Students will determine if the complaint can be handled by that office or needs
to be referred to other university officials. Examples of grievances that will be referred to
other University officials include discrimination or sexual harassment complaints against
faculty, which are referred to the Provost and Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs or
Vice President for Medical Affairs and Dean of the College of Medicine, as appropriate, and
complaints against University staff, including but not limited to discrimination or sexual
harassment, which are referred to Human Resources.
Once it is determined that the Office of Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students
is the appropriate forum for the resolution of the grievance, the Vice President for Student
Affairs and Dean of Students will contact the accused. At this point, every effort will be made to
resolve the complaint through informal discussion with the parties.
Should informal discussion with the parties fail, and the grievant desires a hearing, the
Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students will appoint an ad hoc group with
two administrators, two faculty, and one student to hear the case and render a decision and
recommend a remedy to the complaint. Members of the University Disciplinary Committee may
be used on the committee. The ad hoc committee will meet within five (5) working days of the
request for a hearing.
Should the grievance be determined by the committee to have merit, an appropriate remedy
will be decided upon by the Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students and the
accused’s supervisor. The accused shall have the right to appeal the decision to an administrator
appointed by the Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students within seven (7)
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